Page 46 of Rising Out of the Darkness
I already held her wrist above her head, but her other palm had found its way to my chest when I stepped closer. Shoving my knee between her thighs, I had her completely immobilized.
“I—I…” she stuttered, trying to shove me back. Her head dipped in defeat as I grabbed her free wrist and made it join the other.
Clutching both her wrists in one palm, I let my free hand fall to her forehead where her hair concealed her face. Using my index finger, I traced over her temple, eliciting a faint whimper from her lips.
“Wildfire, I warned you what would happen if you angered me.” My voice scratched against my throat, making it sound deeper than usual. “You broke your deal,again,” I hummed as I tucked the hair around the shell of her ear.
Leaning back, I trailed my fingertips along the side of her jaw, tilting it upwards to meet my eyes. Our chests were so closetogether that the rapid pulse of her heart thundered into mine. My bottom lip hovered dangerously close over hers.
“Whatever shall I do with you now?” I breathed.
Her eyelids fell shut as she captured her bottom lip between her teeth. If only I could trap it between my own.
A low rumble of laughter filled the space beside us, and it felt like we had been doused in cold water. The electricity evaporated from the air instantly. Our heads tilted in the direction of the sound as I separated our bodies.
“Well, hello, you two.” Liam’s smile was about as large as his ego. As he waggled his eyebrows up and down, I groaned into my palm.
“I was just about to escort Elena back to her room.” My voice taut as I scowled back at him.
“Mmhmm, I bet you were.” Liam crossed his arms across his chest. Elena tried to cover her crimson cheeks with her hands.
“Move,” I barked at Liam and grabbed Lena’s wrist while pulling her behind me. “Don’t you have a watch to be on?” I snarled behind me.
Only a faint laugh answered as I stormed away with Elena in tow. Shoving the front door of the tavern open, I barreled through the dining room and stomped up the stairs.
It wasn’t until I stopped in front of the door and fiddled once more with the most insufferable lock in the entire realm that I heard her sniffling beside me.
Lena slumped against the wall, her back towards me as her body shook. In my haste to leave the stables, I hadn’t stopped once to look back at her.
She flinched as I wrapped my palm around her shoulder. “I’m fine,” she whispered, angerly wiping away the tears that had fallen.
“No, you’re not, Lena,” I turned her towards me and gathered her into my arms.
Sobs unleashed in waves as I nuzzled my head on top of hers. She twisted her hands around the back of my tunic as if she was holding on for dear life. Each tear felt like a rock as it crashed inside of me, vibrating all through-out my dynamis. In that moment, I wished for nothing more than to absorb all her pain so she would never have to feel an ounce of it ever again.
“Come on, let’s get you back to sleep,” I hummed against her lavender-scented locks. When I felt her head nod against my chest and her fingers unclench from my tunic, I tried the lock once more. Bless the gods, it opened on the first try.
Once inside, I herded her towards the bed and helped her sit down on the edge. With every movement she winced, no doubt from the ungraceful leap she took from the window earlier. As she stared off into the distance, lost in her thoughts, I bent down and unlaced her boots.
Her tunic was covered with dirt and hay, not something I wanted her to be sleeping in, especially in the state that she was in. In the chair behind us were our satchels. I rummaged through hers but only found another pair of pants. Without a second thought, I grabbed one of my tunics instead and handed it to her. “I’ll turn around, but you need to change out of that.” I nodded towards her tunic.
Lena avoided my gaze and her hands fidgeted inside her lap. “I…I may need some help,” she whispered. “Everything is so sore. I don’t think I can lift my arms above my head without help.”
Her red-rimmed eyes rolled up towards mine, and a shiver ran down my spine. I had to fight every muscle in my face to not react. All I mustered was a grunt and nod as I made my way over to her.
Smooth, real smooth, Dec.
Lena’s arms quivered underneath my touch while I struggled to raise them without causing her pain. She winced as I tuggedthe fabric over her arms. With one more pull, her limbs were freed, and I lifted the rest over her head before I tossed it to the chair behind me.
Even though her breasts were covered by a thin band of fabric, she shielded them from me with her arms. As she did, I noticed a long pink scar that ran along the inside of her right arm. The sight stirred my dynamis as my lips pursed.
Elysians didn’t scar. Either this had happened before she’d received her dynamis, or someone had used an iron blade on her. The only Elysians who utilized those were the Nightshades, and sometimes my father. The thought made a growl tumble out of me as I clenched my tunic in my hands.
Elena shivered under my stare as I slid the new tunic over her and lifted the covers back for her to climb inside. Kicking off my boots, I lifted my own tunic off and stuffed it inside my satchel, where I grabbed something else I needed.
Her gaze followed me as I grabbed my pillow and blanket from the floor and rounded the bed to the other side. When I climbed under the covers, her breath hitched, which she smothered with a cough.
“Give me your wrist, Wildfire.”
